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by Brett Anthony

Chicago, IL — Tyler McCormick, Mr. Rio Grande Leather of New Mexico, was named International Mr. Leather at the 32nd Anniversary IML Competition Sunday night in Chicago.

McCormick, a female-to-male transgender man who uses a wheelchair, bested a field of over 50 contestants, from from across the U.S. and around the world. 

"When I first transitioned, I was told I would never be accepted and that I would never be able to take my shirt off in public," McCormick said during Sunday's competition. "Standing here as a strong, confident leatherman is proof to the contrary."

Participants were judged on stage presence and personality (Pecs and Personality), leather image, presentation skills, and physical appearance.

Over 2,000 leather enthusiasts packed the Grand Ballroom of the Hyatt Regency Chicago for Sunday's competition. Colton Ford entertained the audience. 

First runner up was Lance Holman, Mr. San Francisco Leather, while Jack Andrew Duke, Mr. Texas Leather, was second runner-up.

The Mr. International Bootblack winner was Tim Starkey of the Boston Ramrod.

The judges for the 32nd International Mr. Leather competition are International Mr. Leather 2009 Jeffrey Payne (Dallas, TX), Laura Antoniou (Queens, NY), Shawn Carroll (Ottawa, Canada), Demetri Moshoyannis (San Francisco, CA), Chad Neal (Kansas City, MO), Gene Romaine (Seattle, WA), Daniel Ruester (Berlin, Germany), William "Rubberwilli" Schendel (Chicago), and Robert Valin (New York).

IML began in 1979 when about 400 gay leathermen gathered in Chicago. Today thousands gather in the Windy City over Memorial Day Weekend for what has become an annual tradition for the leather community. 

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